On Monday morning, Chicago Fire defender Gonzalo Segares joined Dr. Bechara Choucair, CDPH Commissioner, and Anna Esquivel, CDPH RN, at the Little Village Community Council for a press event unveiling CDPH billboard, print and CTA flu shot awareness ads featuring Segares and other prominent Chicago sports figures including Mike Ditka, and Elena Delle Donne and Sylvia Fowles, both from the Chicago Sky.

Segares received his annual flu shot from CDPH Immunization Medical Director Julie Morita, M.D and the Department also administered free flu shots at the event for Little Village Community members.

Gonzalo was interviewed by FOX 32 and Univision telling reporters that – "I’ve got to stay healthy for my long season, and I always get my shot once a year. It’s definitely encouraging for people to come over and get theirs."

Gonzalo wasn’t the only celebrity at the event as the Fire’s mascot Sparky also “received” his flu shot.

The annual shot is the best protection against influenza and we want all our fans to be safe, especially during the colder off season. Check out the photos for more and keep an eye out for the ads throughout Chicagoland!

The Fire and a few other results went their way this weekend. Still, the Men in Red remain just below the red line, two points back of the final playoff spot in the East with three matches left to play.

A breakdown of the weekend and what it means for the current Eastern Conference playoff picture…

Rundown: New York held a long lead, controversy ensued, New England went up 2-1 late only to see Tim Cahill bag an incredible header to see Red Bull walk away with a 2-2 draw and eventually become the first team in MLS to clinch a playoff berth.

Still, the game will feel like a missed opportunity at home for a team still hoping to win the Supporters Shield and lock down the Eastern Conference top seed. The result is disappointing from a Fire perspective for two reasons: 1) It gives New England an extra point and 2) It almost assuredly makes Red Bull’s home game vs. the Fire on October 27 all the more meaningful.

New York will take a break off this week before visiting high-flying Houston on October 20.

Rundown: Sporting KC did exactly what they needed to do, getting a well-earned 1-0 victory at Columbus Saturday night. The result means Sporting has earned just three points less on the road than they have at home this season – a somewhat incredible away record in MLS terms.

KC controls their own destiny for Eastern Conference top spot but faces a very tough test Wednesday vs. a Dynamo side that jumped up to third this weekend. A Sporting win in that match automatically puts them into the playoffs but they can also make it with a combination draw and Fire draw or loss would also do the trick.

Rundown: Houston continued their climb up the table with their third straight win Friday vs. Montreal. Things looked bleak for the Dynamo in early September but the side now seems destined to once again reach the playoffs and with back-to-back matches vs. Sporting KC and New York, their ascent might not stop at third place.

Rundown: Montreal fell again 1-0 at Houston Friday night, moving the side that spent much of the regular season at the top of the East all the way down to fourth place. The Impact still hold a game in hand on everyone and both of their remaining home matches are six-pointers against New England (this week) and Philadelphia (October 19). If they can recover from their down form and win those games, they should still be in the playoffs.

Rundown: There was a point Saturday night in which it looked like all three Eastern Conference games would go the Fire’s way, then Kleberson’s 96th minute free kick happened, giving Philadelphia a crucial 1-0 home win over Toronto FC.

With that win, the Union stayed above the red line, two points ahead of the Fire with three matches remaining. Philly will look to take advantage of Saturday’s game at lowly D.C. before having to close with tough matches at Montreal and vs. Sporting KC.

The Fire visit FC Dallas who kept their quite slim Western Conference playoff hopes alive with a 1-1 draw vs. Real Salt Lake Saturday. With the Galaxy destroying Chivas USA and even Vancouver picking up a point vs. Portland Sunday, it doesn’t look good for Dallas, who are seven points out of the final playoff spot with three games to go, meaning a loss Saturday would officially be there end of the season.

On the other hand, the Fire are 3-12-2 all-time in Dallas and will go for their second straight away win on Saturday – a feat the team has achieved just once in the past four seasons. A win in Frisco will put the Fire in prime position with a home match vs. Toronto looming.

Rundown: New England were no doubt the biggest losers from this weekend’s results, scoring two goals to go up 2-1 late only to have Cahill’s 96th minute header serve as a huge gut punch. A visit to Montreal, who are also coming off a loss at Houston, looms quite large and defeat in Quebec could do serious damage to the Revs’ playoff hopes.

Still, the home-and-home vs. Columbus to close the season will keep things interesting for the Revolution and at the very least, likely keep them in the mix until the final weekend.

Rundown: As great as the Crew’s run under interim head man Brian Bliss was, all it would take was another loss to deal a horrible blow to their playoff hopes. The Crew will now take their bye week but they need to win their remaining two matches and hope for major help around the East in order to make the playoffs.

On the team’s approach to facing D.C. United and the home side’s high-energy display:

“For sure, that was to be expected. Winning the Open Cup is a great achievement and it doesn’t matter what their record is. They have a lot of quality players on their team and obviously coming off that, being at home, we knew it was going to be a difficult match. We had some chances early on. I think they did also, but we were able to finish out chances. I think that was the key in the game. I think, obviously, in the second half Sean made some big saves for us and I think we were smart towards the end to close the game off. We kept our shape really well, we were smart in possession, and we knew, as they were pushing, that there would be opportunities on the break. But we didn’t have to go every time. I think we needed to be on the ball a little bit more, but then again the third goal, obviously, it was great, but I just wanted to keep the ball. We were smart, we kept our shape, we didn’t get stretched out knowing that they had to push. I think when you keep a clean sheet and you put your chances away, you put yourself in a good position to win. We knew it was going to be a difficult match. It’s a quality team regardless of their record, plus coming off that final, you know? They put their emotions into it, and really, they were playing loose.”

On what he saw on Jeff Larentowicz’s goal

“Just some good ball movement, and obviously, the movement off the ball was the key. You get those chances and you put them away. But yeah, there was some good ball movement and some good off-the-ball movement, and I think the field was fantastic tonight. It made for a good game. You could move the ball quickly and stuff like that. It was a good combination, and guys were rewarded for their movement off the ball.”

On Mike Magee’s role on the night:

“I think that you need to find other guys. I think Mike, as a striker, I think one of his roles is to score. You give him two or three chances, you know he’s going to do that. But he’s also the guy where it really doesn’t matter. For him, he’d give up the 18 goals if that would mean we have four more wins for the team. That’s the kind of guy he is. It’s good because then, when you, with Juan and Quincy coming in with their ability and attitude, the movement off the ball creates a lot of space for our midfield players. And Mike is smart to find those guys. I think Jeff did a very good job joining in late and making late runs. A lot of times goals follow goals. When you’re on the road and get chances, you got to put them away and you need to be able to defend well and we did, and Sean came up with some big saves.”

On Sean Johnson’s performance:

“He played well. He made some key saves. We talked about our ability to close games out in the end and how we do it. We didn’t do a good job last week against Montreal. We had the lead up into the final ten minutes and we were pushing the game a little bit and we didn’t keep our shape as we were moving forward, it was almost like we were down 2-1. I thought we were smarter about this, the way we went about this game. We had the lead, and I think we pushed at the right moments, we took the risks at the right moments, but I always know that we kept numbers up in the back. It’s great when you win. D.C. United, like I said, has a lot of quality and it’s never easy for the players to come and play here.”

On the team’s mentality entering the final games of the regular season:

“We knew we had to win tonight. I saw that Montreal and Houston played tonight and Houston won that game, and there are a lot of matches tomorrow. We knew that this was a big game for us. We needed to get points. We’re playing four games—three on the road—and we need to find points to be there. It’s never easy. But it’s great that we got the three points here and you can watch the games a little bit more relaxed tomorrow.”

Jeff Larentowicz, Chicago Fire Midfielder

On the team’s performance:

“We’re in the playoff race and we want to stay alive. I think last week we gave some points away. Every time we’ve gone on the road and had an opportunity to push ourselves further in the playoff race we haven’t done it but tonight we did it. D.C.’s a team coming off a big win and we wanted to make sure we came in and beat them.”

On his goal:

“Juan had the ball wide and took a couple guys on. I know that my job is to get in the box when I see a play develop. The ball came to me and I was able to finish it. Juan did all the work and I just kind of cleaned it up at the end.”

On the win affecting the team’s confidence in the playoff push:

“Yeah, it keeps us alive. I think we haven’t done well on the road this year. To score three goals is great, and to keep ourselves in it is all we could have asked. We get to play next week again in a game that means something. We all believe we can get into the playoffs but we have to make sure we do it when we have the opportunity.”

Sean Johnson, Chicago Fire Goalkeeper

On his team’s start to the game:

“It took us a while to really get settled into the game. There was a very high level of play to the game for the first few minutes. It was tough—I’m not going to say it was an easy time. We definitely had to grind it out.”

On the effect of the result in the team’s playoff push:

“It’s huge. We got three points, and especially in this time of year when we’re fighting for a playoff spot. It’s massive no matter where you are—home or away. I think every point matters, and to come away with three points is a big task and everyone should be happy. Now we can get better and get ready for next week.”

After a disappointing September, the Fire head to the Capitol to face a D.C. United squad still on cloud nine after their shock upset of Real Salt Lake in the 100thU.S. Open Cup final Tuesdayevening (LIVE 7pm CT on NBCSN). D.C.’s win combined with the Fire’s erratic away form means this game is very difficult to predict.

Here are some things to look out for a tactical perspective…

Forcing disruptions in the D.C. backline – not allowing them to act as a unit

In many games this season, D.C.’s opponents have stretched their backline, causing a number of errors. One example of this is forcing a central defender out of the middle and out wide. Another is forcing the defenders deep into their own half.

In D.C.’s recent match against New England, the Revs’ attack forced United to drop deeper and deeper, allowing players like Kelyn Rowe free shots from outside the box because defenders didn’t step up to challenge them.

In the Fire’s last MLS match against D.C., Joel Lindepere played some brilliant balls over the top of the United defense to the Fire strikers who were onside due to a combination of good runs and poor organization by the D.C. backline.

With the titanic effort put inon Tuesdaynight in Salt Lake, D.C. will almost certainly be making changes in defense but no matter who gets the start, the Fire players must be prepared to hound United’s backline from the first whistle and force them into making mistakes.

Changes to the Fire team – a more attacking starting eleven needed

In the first half of last weekend’s match against Montreal, the Fire set up too cautiously for my liking, most notably in the middle of the field where Logan Pause and Arevalo Rios played their first game together. Both players excel at breaking up the play but without Larentowicz or a more attacking player in the middle, the Fire were lacking in the attack.

Coach Frank Klopas recognized this and made two changes at halftime which completely turned the game around. The introduction of Alex and Chris Rolfe sparked the Men in Red into life offensively and but for some better luck, the team would have walked away with three points.

Bakary Soumare should return to the backline after his suspension, allowing Larentowicz to slot back into the midfield. Alex made big impact from the bench last week and starting him in front of Dilly Duka would give the Fire another dimension in the attack with his linkup play with Magee and Anangonó excellent in recent matches.

Duka has looked a little weary of late which isn’t a surprise considering he has started seven more matches this season than he did for the Crew throughout the whole of last season, already playing almost 500 more minutes with four games and potential playoff games to come.

A focus on Luis Silva – the former TFC man should start after being a sub in Salt Lake

Luis Silva came on for veteran Dwayne DeRosario with 15 minutes left to play in Tuesday’s Open Cup final and according toWashington Postjournalist Steven Goff, Silva should get the start tonight.

Silva is comfortable playing as the lone striker or in the number 10 role, just behind the advanced forward.

As I mentioned in my tactical preview for the U.S. Open Cup semifinal, Silva and DeRo rely on their wide players to support the attack which allows Silva to get into the box and feed on crosses instead of having to drop deep and try and creature from there.

That being said, Silva is not afraid to take a shot from distance as Fire fans will remember, he scored a stunning 25 yard curler into the top corner against the Men in Red in July. The next week he also struck from distance, hitting a low bullet into the bottom corner against New England at RFK Stadium.

D.C. have scored a league low 20 goals this season and if the Fire can keep Silva under wraps tonight it will help keep the Red and Black off the score sheet.

Prediction:I have no idea what D.C. team we are going to see tonight but for all the talk of playing playoff spoiler, I think their minds will still be at Rio Tinto Stadium. 3-0 Fire with goals from Magee, Anangonó, and Berry.

As Chris Rolfe himself pointed out to Anthony Zilis recently, 2013 has been his worst year statistically with just four goals and one assist over 28 games this season. Still, teammates have backed him, with his contribution as a midfield sub in last Saturday's 2-2 draw specifically sticking out.

The mention of this being a poor statistical season combined with Mike Magee calling Rolfe a "great finisher" had me go back and nerd out on his body of work over the years. With 48 goals, Rolfe continues to be the club's second all-time scoring leader behind Ante Razov at 76.

The fact that Rolfe has now equaled the number of seasons Razov played made their shots to goal percentage an interesting and worthy comparison.

See the tables below...

Ante Razov

Years

GP

Goals

Shots

SOG

Goals/Shots %

Goals/SOG %

1998

30

10

88

41

11.36%

24.39%

1999

30

14

90

49

15.56%

28.57%

2000

24

18

127

63

14.17%

28.57%

2001

7

2

26

11

7.69%

18.18%

2002

25

14

115

56

12.17%

25%

2003

26

14

119

67

11.76%

20.9%

2004

13

4

52

25

7.69%

16%

TOTALS

155

76

617

312

12.32%

24.36%

Chris Rolfe

Years

GP

Goals

Shots

SOG

Goals/Shots %

Goals/SOG %

2005

29

8

61

32

13.11%

25%

2006

21

7

39

19

17.95%

36.84%

2007

19

6

38

19

15.79%

31.58%

2008

26

9

42

24

21.43%

37.5%

2009

28

6

62

26

9.68%

23.08%

2012

22

8

58

20

13.79%

40%

2013

28

4

66

18

6.06%

22.22%

TOTALS

173

48

366

158

13.11%

30.38%

Some Takeaways...

- Despite playing 18 matches more, Razov took 251 more shots and 153 more shots on goal than Rolfe. That might have to do with the fact that...

Rolfe has played a significant amount of his Fire career out on the wing -and-

Razov was arguably surrounded by a stronger cast of attacking players (the league never had more than 12 teams when he was in Chicago) -and-

Ante just shot a heck of a lot more than Chris

- To Magee's point, Rolfe is a stronger finisher over the course of his Fire career. Only once did Razov go above 15% conversion on his goals/shot ratio while Rolfe did it three times. Between 2006-08, the current Fire attacker also went above 31% on his Goals/SOG ratio and has never dipped below 20% in his career.

- While there isn't much difference in the pair's career goals/shots ratio (less than one percentage point), Rolfe's Goals/SOG ratio is noticeably higher, coming in at just over 30%.

In terms of my soccer writing heroes, The Washington Post's Steven Goff is the epitome for me.

Long before covering the game was trendy and social media made everyone an expert, Goff was there giving incredible coverage to the U.S. Men's and Women's national teams as well as D.C. United through his Soccer Insider blog on washingtonpost.com. He's kept up in the social media age as well, with nearly 100,000 people following his @SoccerInsider account on Twitter.

So naturally we here at Chicago-Fire.com are honored to have him answer three questions relating to D.C. United as the Men in Red prepare for a crucial clash with the newly crowned U.S. Open Cup champions Friday night at RFK Stadium (LIVE 7pm CT on NBC Sports Network).

Jeff Crandall: Where does Tuesday's U.S. Open Cup victory rank in terms of the club's other trophy wins?

Steven Goff: The four MLS Cup trophies rank higher than this championship, but among the three Open Cup titles, this one was the most satisfying -- on the road against a high-quality opponent during an otherwise terrible year.

It's hard to compare domestic tournament titles with international trophies (CONCACAF Champions Cup and Interamerican Cup many years ago). The Supporters' Shield is different because it involves a season-long effort. All in all, I haven't seen so many happy DCU faces in a very long time.

JC:With the playoffs long out of sight and the Open Cup match the last meaningful one for D.C. this season, what type of lineup do you expect United to run out Friday vs. the Fire?

SG: United played Tuesday night and traveled all day Wednesday, so I would expect a mix of regulars and reserves Friday. I would guess Jared Jeffrey, Kyle Porter, Luis Silva, Daniel Woolard, among others, will enter the starting lineup. Maybe Dennis Iapichino and Conor Doyle as well.

JC:Having won a trophy, is Ben Olsen's job safe for 2014 despite the possibility of finishing with the league's worst-ever regular season record?

SG: Olsen has a guaranteed contract in 2014, so even without winning the Open Cup title, I expected to see him back. The trophy certainly helps his cause. The players play hard for him and management loves him.

He's been involved with the club as a player, assistant coach and head coach for 15 years -- deep ties that are hard to break. I do think ownership sees a bright future with Olsen in charge.